Buck Woody : Cloud, Learninghttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/tags/Cloud/Learning/default.aspxTags: Cloud, LearningenCommunityServer 2.1 SP2 (Build: 61129.1)The Windows Azure Software Development Kit (SDK) and the Windows Azure Training Kit (WATK)http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2012/09/12/the-windows-azure-software-development-kit-sdk-and-the-windows-azure-training-kit-watk.aspxWed, 12 Sep 2012 13:40:40 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:45165BuckWoody0http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/45165.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=45165<p>Windows Azure is a platform that allows you to write software, run software, or use software that we've already written. We provide lots of resources to help you do that - many can be found right here in this blog series. There are two primary resources you can use, and it's important to understand what they are and what they do.</p>
<p><a href="http://officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/en-us/images/MH900441285.jpg"><img width="121" height="107" style="float:left;max-width:550px;" alt="" src="http://officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/en-us/images/MH900441285.jpg" border="0" /></a></p>
<h1>The Windows Azure Software Development Kit (SDK)</h1>
<p>Actually, this isn't one resource. We have SDK's for multiple development environments, such as Visual Studio and also Eclipse, along with SDK's for iOS, Android and other environments. Windows Azure is a "back end", so almost any technology or front end system can use it to solve a problem.</p>
<p>The SDK's are primarily for development. In the case of Visual Studio, you'll get a runtime environment for Windows Azure which allows you to develop, test and even run code all locally - you do not have to be connected to Windows Azure at all, until you're ready to deploy.</p>
<p>You'll also get a few samples and codeblocks, along with all of the libraries you need to code with Windows Azure in .NET, PHP, Ruby, Java and more.</p>
<p>The SDK is updated frequently, so check this location to find the latest for your environment and language - just click the bar that corresponds to what you want:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/develop/downloads/" target="_blank">http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/develop/downloads/</a></p>
<p><a href="http://officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/en-us/images/MH900438678.jpg"><img width="151" height="163" style="margin:2px 5px;border:0px currentColor;float:left;max-width:550px;" src="http://officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/en-us/images/MH900438678.jpg" /></a></p>
<h1>The Windows Azure Training Kit (WATK)</h1>
<p>Whether you're writing code, using Windows Azure Virtual Machines (VM's) or working with Hadoop, you can use the WATK to get examples, code, PowerShell scripts, PowerPoint decks, training videos and much more. This should be your second download after the SDK. This is all of the training you need to get started, and even beyond. The WATK is updated frequently - and you can find the latest one here:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/develop/net/other-resources/training-kit/" target="_blank">http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/develop/net/other-resources/training-kit/</a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>There are many other resources - again, check the <a href="http://windowsazure.com">http://windowsazure.com</a> site, the <a href="http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/community/newsletter/2012/june/" target="_blank">community newsletter (which introduces the latest features)</a>, and <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/rss.aspx" target="_blank">my blog for more</a>.</p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=45165" width="1" height="1">ScriptsWebLatest VersionDocumentationSQL AzureLink ListsLinksDownloadsLearningCloudAzureWindows AzureCloud ComputingConceptsPresentationsCommunityWindows Azure End to End Exampleshttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2012/05/29/windows-azure-end-to-end-examples.aspxTue, 29 May 2012 13:45:59 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:43642BuckWoody0http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/43642.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=43642<p>I’m fascinated by the way people learn. I’m told there are several methods people use to understand new information, from reading to watching, from experiencing to exploring. </p> <p>Personally, I use multiple methods of learning when I encounter a new topic, usually starting with reading a bit about the concepts. I quickly want to put those into practice, however, especially in the technical realm. I immediately look for examples where I can start trying out the concepts. But I often want a “real” example – not just something that represents the concept, but something that is real-world, showing some feature I could actually use. </p> <p>And it’s no different with the Windows Azure platform – I like finding things I can do now, and actually use. So when I started learning Windows Azure, <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=8396" target="_blank">I of course began with the Windows Azure Training Kit</a> – which has lots of examples and labs, presentations and so on. But from there, I wanted more examples I could learn from, and eventually teach others with. I was asked if I would write a few of those up, so here are the ones I use. </p> <h2>CodePlex</h2> <p><a href="http://www.codeplex.com/" target="_blank">CodePlex is Microsoft’s version of an “Open Source” repository</a>. Anyone can start a project, add code, documentation and more to it and make it available to the world, free of charge, using various licenses as they wish. Microsoft also uses this location for most of the examples we publish, and sample databases for SQL Server. </p> <p>If you search in CodePlex for “Azure”, you’ll come back with a list of projects that folks have posted, including those of us at Microsoft. The source code and documentation are there, so you can learn using actual examples of code that will do what you need. There’s everything from a simple table query to <a href="http://blobshare.codeplex.com/" target="_blank">a full project that is sort of a “Corporate Dropbox” that uses Windows Azure Storage</a>. </p> <p>The advantage is that this code is immediately usable. It’s searchable, and you can often find a complete solution to meet your needs. The disadvantage is that the code is pretty specific – it may not cover a huge project like you’re looking for. Also, depending on the author(s), you might not find the documentation level you want. </p> <p><strong><em>Link: <a href="http://azureexamples.codeplex.com/site/search?query=Azure&amp;ac=8">http://azureexamples.codeplex.com/site/search?query=Azure&amp;ac=8</a>&#160;</em></strong></p> <p>&#160;</p> <h2>Tailspin</h2> <p><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/practices/default" target="_blank">Microsoft Patterns and Practices</a> is a group here that does an amazing job at sharing standard ways of doing IT – from operations to coding. If you’re not familiar with this resource, make sure you read up on it. Long before I joined Microsoft I used their work in my daily job – saved a ton of time. It has resources not only for Windows Azure but other Microsoft software as well. </p> <p>The Patterns and Practices group also publishes full books – you can buy these, but many are also online for free. There’s an end-to-end example for Windows Azure using a company called “Tailspin”, and the work covers not only the code but the design of the full solution. If you really want to understand the thought that goes into a Platform-as-a-Service solution, this is an excellent resource. </p> <p>The advantages are that this is a book, it’s complete, and it includes a discussion of design decisions. The disadvantage is that it’s a little over a year old – and in “Cloud” years that’s a lot. So many things have changed, improved, and have been added that you need to treat this as a resource, but not the only one. Still, highly recommended. </p> <p><strong><em>Link: <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff728592.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff728592.aspx</a></em></strong></p> <h2>Azure Stock Trader</h2> <p>Sometimes you need a mix of a CodePlex-style application, and a little more detail on how it was put together. And it would be great if you could actually play with the completed application, to see how it really functions on the actual platform.</p> <p>That’s the Azure Stock Trader application. There’s a place where you can read about the application, and then it’s been published to Windows Azure – the production platform – and you can use it, explore, and see how it performs. </p> <p>I use this application all the time to demonstrate Windows Azure, or a particular part of Windows Azure.</p> <p>The advantage is that this is an end-to-end application, and online as well. The disadvantage is that it takes a bit of self-learning to work through.&#160; </p> <p><strong><em>Links: Learn it: <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/netframework/bb499684">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/netframework/bb499684</a> Use it: <a href="https://azurestocktrader.cloudapp.net/">https://azurestocktrader.cloudapp.net/</a></em></strong></p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=43642" width="1" height="1">DevelopmentDeveloperTipsDesignTutorialsWebDocumentationPlanningSQL AzureLink ListsLinksWalkthroughsDownloadsLearningHow I workCloudAzureWindows AzureCloud ComputingConceptsPresentationsMSDNTechnetAzure Design Patternshttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2011/08/23/azure-design-patterns.aspxTue, 23 Aug 2011 14:34:21 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:38020BuckWoody1http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/38020.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=38020<p>I have a lot of learning resources you can find here at my blog, but I wanted to point one out this morning. It's a Silverlight application called "Azure Design Patterns". You can find it at <a href="http://azuredesignpatterns.com/">http://azuredesignpatterns.com/,</a> and it's an interesting way of looking at concepts and patterns for Azure interactively.</p>
<p><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/communityserver-blogs-components-weblogfiles/00-00-00-79-79/5127.AzureDesignPatternsDotCom.png"><img border="0" alt="" src="http://sqlblog.com/resized-image.ashx/__size/550x0/__key/communityserver-blogs-components-weblogfiles/00-00-00-79-79/5127.AzureDesignPatternsDotCom.png" /></a></p>
<p>I use this quite often even in presentations to show definitions of terms, and to explain concepts within Azure. You can do the same when you're asked to explain a Platform as a Service like Azure. Explore the site to create a "map" of what you want to cover. The advantage of this approach is that you can leave your listeners with not only the material you cover, but other information they might want to learn.</p>
<p>Of course, it's not just for presentations. You can use this information for many of the technical concepts within Azure for your own learning, but you should be aware that it is not a "book-like" experience, meaning that you should probably use this site as a great reference less than a sequential learning plan.</p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=38020" width="1" height="1">LearningCloudAzureCloud ComputingConceptsSQL Azure Use Case: Web-based Applicationshttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2011/04/19/sql-azure-use-case-web-based-applications.aspxTue, 19 Apr 2011 14:38:40 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:35022BuckWoody0http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/35022.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=35022<p><strong><em></em></strong></p> <p><span style="font-size:x-small;"><em><span style="font-size:small;">This is one in a series of posts on when and where to use a distributed architecture design in your organization's computing needs. You can find the main post here: </span><a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/01/18/windows-azure-and-sql-azure-use-cases.aspx"><span style="font-size:small;"><u><font color="#800080">http://blogs.msdn.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2011/01/18/windows-azure-and-sql-azure-use-cases.aspx</font></u></span></a><span style="font-size:small;"> </span></em></span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size:small;">Description:</span></strong></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">Some applications lend themselves for the entire architecture to be placed on an outside provider such as Azure. And in some cases, you’re interested in using a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS):</span></p> <ul> <li><span style="font-size:small;">Web application with fast meta-data search requirements </span></li> <li><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-size:small;">Web application requiring </span>high levels of consistency and/or atomicity</span></li> <li><span style="font-size:small;">Common-use data, shared among multiple web applications</span></li> <li><span style="font-size:small;">Durable data storage for stateless applications</span></li> </ul> <p><span style="font-size:small;">Unless you need the data to be kept local (see the hybrid application use-case), SQL Azure makes a good fit.SQL Azure shares the same logical “backbone” as Windows Azure, so an Azure application that needs structured storage, either exclusively or alongside Blob or Windows Azure Table storage (Key/Value pair, more akin to NoSQL in architecture than RDBMS).</span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size:small;">Implementation:</span></strong></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">This is actually one of the easiest concepts to display for a SQL Azure architecture. It’s logically the same as keeping the application completely local, with the exception that you don’t have to install or maintain anything. Note that although Windows Azure applications are a common use, you can use any web program to access the SQL Azure database:</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/5850.webapp_5F00_2.png"><img style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" title="webapp" border="0" alt="webapp" src="http://blogs.msdn.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/8510.webapp_5F00_thumb.png" width="313" height="72" /></a></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;"></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">Considerations here include the decisions on when to use structured storage for a datum or some other storage. In many configurations, you might want multiple storage paradigms. Here is one such example architecture, although many others are possible:</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;"><a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/2555.webapp2_5F00_2.png"><img style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" title="webapp2" border="0" alt="webapp2" src="http://blogs.msdn.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/1157.webapp2_5F00_thumb.png" width="572" height="200" /></a></span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">In this diagram I’m indicating a simple shopping-cart application. A</span><span style="font-size:small;"> Windows Azure Web Role provides a “front end” or presentation layer to the client. A Worker Role provides computation functions, and the Queue maintains the state information so that the application is scalable. SQL Azure stores meta-data about the items in a catalogue of items a user can purchase, such as name, size, price and so on. This provides fast lookup, and allows re-use of code that existed on an on-premise SQL Server.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">Once the item is located, a reference in a SQL Azure column (from a standard SQL query) locates the GUID for the object’s picture, stored in Windows Azure Blob storage, and displays that to the user. The Worker Role moves the information for the customer’s order from the Queue to a Windows Azure Table object.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">Of course, you could architect all of these data elements into only one or another kind of storage. In this case, the cost, performance and other characteristics of each data requirement dictated this selection.</span></p> <p><strong><span style="font-size:small;">Resources: </span></strong></p> <p><span style="font-size:small;">Storage and their abstractions: <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsazurestorage/archive/2010/05/10/windows-azure-storage-abstractions-and-their-scalability-targets.aspx">http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsazurestorage/archive/2010/05/10/windows-azure-storage-abstractions-and-their-scalability-targets.aspx</a>&#160;</span></p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=35022" width="1" height="1">DevelopmentDeveloperDesignSQL AzureLearningData ProfessionalCloudAzureWindows AzureCloud ComputingApplication ArchitectureConceptsWindows Azure Emulators On Your Desktophttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2011/02/01/windows-azure-emulators-on-your-desktop.aspxTue, 01 Feb 2011 14:39:00 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:33096BuckWoody3http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/33096.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=33096<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">Many people feel they have to set up a full Azure subscription online to try out and develop on Windows Azure. But you don&rsquo;t have to do that right away. In fact, you can download the Windows Azure Compute Emulator &ndash; a &ldquo;cloud development environment&rdquo; &ndash; right on your desktop. No, it&rsquo;s not for production use, and no, you won&rsquo;t have other people using your system as a cloud provider, </span><a target="_blank" href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg432960.aspx"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#0000ff;font-size:small;">and yes, there are some differences with Production Windows Azure</span></span></a><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">, but you&rsquo;ll be able code, run, test, diagnose, watch, change and configure code without having any connection to the Internet at all. The best thing about this approach is that when you are ready to deploy the code you&rsquo;ve been testing, a few clicks deploys it to your subscription when you make one. </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">So what deep-magic does it take to run such a thing right on your laptop or even a Virtual PC? Well, it&rsquo;s actually not all that difficult. You simply download and install the Windows Azure SDK (<em>you can even get a free version of Visual Studio for it to run on &ndash; you&rsquo;re welcome</em>) from here: </span><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsazure/cc974146.aspx"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#0000ff;font-size:small;">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsazure/cc974146.aspx</span></span></a><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">This SDK will also install the Windows Azure Compute Emulator and the Windows Azure Storage Emulator &ndash; and then you&rsquo;re all set. Right-click the icon for Visual Studio and select &ldquo;Run as Administrator&rdquo;:</span></span></span><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="color:#000000;font-size:small;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/1072.azure1_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="163" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/0083.azure1_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure1" border="0" title="azure1" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Now open a new &ldquo;Cloud&rdquo; type of project: </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="color:#000000;font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/8004.azure2_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="163" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/5466.azure2_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure2" border="0" title="azure2" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a></span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Add your Web and Worker Roles that you want to code: </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="color:#000000;font-size:small;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/2630.azure2b_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="163" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/0181.azure2b_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure2b" border="0" title="azure2b" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">And when you&rsquo;re done with your design, press F5 to start the desktop version of Azure: </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="color:#000000;font-size:small;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/2046.azure3_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="163" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/1157.azure3_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure3" border="0" title="azure3" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Want to learn more about what&rsquo;s happening underneath? Right-click the tray icon with the Azure logo, and select the two emulators to see what they are doing: </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="color:#000000;font-size:small;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/5873.azure4_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="163" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/3113.azure4_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure4" border="0" title="azure4" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp; </span><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/6837.azure5_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="162" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/4300.azure5_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure5" border="0" title="azure5" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/5367.azure6_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="162" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/7002.azure6_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure6" border="0" title="azure6" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span><a href="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/0160.azure7_5F00_2.png"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><img height="162" width="244" src="http://sqlblog.com/cfs-file.ashx/__key/CommunityServer-Blogs-Components-WeblogFiles/00-00-00-79-79-metablogapi/6428.azure7_5F00_thumb.png" alt="azure7" border="0" title="azure7" style="background-image:none;border-bottom:0px;border-left:0px;padding-left:0px;padding-right:0px;display:inline;border-top:0px;border-right:0px;padding-top:0px;" /></span></a></span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">In the configuration files, you&rsquo;ll see a &ldquo;Use Development Storage&rdquo; setting. You can call the BLOB, Table or Queue storage and it will all run on your desktop. When you&rsquo;re ready to deploy everything to Windows Azure, you simply change the configuration settings and add the storage keys and so on that you need. </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;">Want to learn more about all this? </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes;">&nbsp;</span> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">Overview of the Windows Azure Compute Emulator: </span><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg432968.aspx"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#0000ff;font-size:small;">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg432968.aspx</span></span></a><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">Overview of the Windows Azure Storage Emulator: </span><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg432983.aspx"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#0000ff;font-size:small;">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/gg432983.aspx</span></span></a><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">January 2011 Training Kit: </span><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=413E88F8-5966-4A83-B309-53B7B77EDF78&amp;displaylang=en"><span style="text-decoration:underline;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#0000ff;font-size:small;">http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=413E88F8-5966-4A83-B309-53B7B77EDF78&amp;displaylang=en</span></span></a><span style="font-size:small;"><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:Calibri;"> </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;color:#000000;font-size:small;">&nbsp;</span></p>
</p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;">&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family:Calibri;"></span></p><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=33096" width="1" height="1">TipsLearningDataHow I workCloudAzureWindows AzureCloud ComputingComputePresentationsWindows Azure Learning Plan - Storagehttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/archive/2010/11/23/windows-azure-learning-plan-storage.aspxTue, 23 Nov 2010 15:24:00 GMT21093a07-8b3d-42db-8cbf-3350fcbf5496:30920BuckWoody0http://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/comments/30920.aspxhttp://sqlblog.com/blogs/buck_woody/commentrss.aspx?PostID=30920<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">This is one in a series of posts on a Windows Azure Learning Plan. <a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/buckwoody/archive/2010/11/16/windows-azure-learning-plan.aspx">You can find the main post here</a>. This one deals with Storage for<span>&nbsp; </span>Windows Azure.</p>
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">&nbsp;</p>
<div style="direction:ltr;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse:collapse;direction:ltr;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;">
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:700;">Overview</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">Overview and general<span style="mso-spacerun:yes;">&nbsp; </span>information about Windows Azure Storage - what it is, how it works, and where you can learn more. </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">General Overview Whitepaper <i><span style="color:#008000;font-size:x-small;">(registration of a screen name, but free)</span></i></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/understanding-data-storage-offerings-on-the-windows-azure-platform.aspx">http://social.technet.microsoft.com/wiki/contents/articles/understanding-data-storage-offerings</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Official Microsoft Site on Azure Storage</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;margin:0in;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee924681.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee924681.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Scalability Targets for Azure Storage</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;margin:0in;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/windowsazurestorage/archive/2010/05/10/windows-azure-storage-abstractions-and-their-scalability-targets.aspx">http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsazurestorage/archive/2010/05/10/windows-azure-storage-abstractions-and-their-scalability-targets.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Understanding Azure Storage by using the API</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;margin:0in;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/paolos/archive/2011/02/21/yet-another-application-to-handle-windows-azure-storage-services.aspx">http://blogs.msdn.com/b/paolos/archive/2011/02/21/yet-another-application-to-handle-windows-azure-storage-services.aspx</a></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:700;">Blobs</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">Blob Storage is a binary-level "container" that can hold one or more streams of data.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Understanding Block Blobs and Page Blobs</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee691964.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee691964.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Blob Service Concepts</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179376.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179376.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:700;">Tables</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">Tables are key-value-pair type storage, and can be in the terabyte range of size.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Understanding the Table Storage Data Model</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179338.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179338.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Table Service Concepts</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179463.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179463.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Querying Tables and Entities</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd894031.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd894031.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:700;">Queues</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">Queues are actually more table storage - but specifically designed to allow Web and Worker Roles to communicate.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Queue Service Concepts</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179353.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179353.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Queue Service API</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179363.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd179363.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Azure Drive</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">An Azure Drive isn't something you mount over the web (although that's possible to do with a little code) - it's a "local" NTFS drive for Windows Azure Applications.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Windows Azure Drives white paper</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9710117">http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9710117</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:700;">Content Delivery Network</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">An "Edge" network of storage that buffers after the first use by a client. </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">General Overview</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://sqlblog.com/b/windowsazure/archive/2009/11/05/introducing-the-windows-azure-content-delivery-network.aspx">http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsazure/archive/2009/11/05/introducing-the-windows-azure-content-delivery-network.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Delivering High-Bandwidth Content with the Windows Azure CDN</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee795176.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee795176.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><span style="font-weight:700;">Tools and Utilities</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;">Free and not-free tools to work with Azure Storage.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Storage SDK</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/microsoft.windowsazure.storageclient.aspx">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/microsoft.windowsazure.storageclient.aspx</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Benchmarks and Throughput tests</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://azurescope.cloudapp.net/BenchmarkTestCases/">http://azurescope.cloudapp.net/BenchmarkTestCases/</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Mount an Azure Drive as an NTFS Drive</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://azurescope.cloudapp.net/CodeSamples/cs/792ce345-256b-4230-a62f-903f79c63a67/">http://azurescope.cloudapp.net/CodeSamples/cs/792ce345-256b-4230-a62f-903f79c63a67/</a> </p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width:2.35in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="text-align:right;margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;color:#4f81bd;font-size:11pt;">Command-line&nbsp;and other&nbsp;tools&nbsp;for working with Azure Storage</p>
</td>
<td style="width:4.543in;vertical-align:top;border:#a3a3a3 1pt solid;padding:4pt;">
<p style="margin:0in;font-family:Calibri;font-size:11pt;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/2acx6d8">http://tinyurl.com/2acx6d8</a> and <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsazurestorage/archive/2010/04/17/windows-azure-storage-explorers.aspx">http://blogs.msdn.com/b/windowsazurestorage/archive/2010/04/17/windows-azure-storage-explorers.aspx</a>&nbsp;</p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
</div><img src="http://sqlblog.com/aggbug.aspx?PostID=30920" width="1" height="1">Link ListsLearningCloudAzureWindows AzureStorage